Safety and fun at the pool

Following an incident at the pool in early July, a number of residents expressed concerns about what they considered occasional unruly play and roughhousing near the basketball hoop that interfered with others’ enjoyment.

Many of these concerns were expressed via the community email list. Though the Board did not communicate the actions it took back via the same medium, the pool management company was contacted and informed of neighbors’ concerns about the lifeguards’ lack enforcement of the pool rules.

Paul Buehler, chair of the Pool Committee, provided this update to Board members and agreed with Board members that it should be shared with the wider community who weren’t aware of the Board’s actions in response to the incident.

Dear MCA Community Members,

Mr. Gorthy came to the July MCA Board meeting and read his e-mail to us and discussed an incident at the pool with the Board.

As the President, Bob Derrick, apologized for the young man that caused the incident and accepted the copies of the e-mails Mr. Gorthy had printed and told him he had read the written incident log at the pool before the meeting and spoken to the Guards. Mr. Gorthy was assured the Pool Committee Chairman would look into the incident and talk to the Pool Management Company as well as the Pool Managers and Guards. The following items were done as a result of Mr. Gorthy’s complaint:

  1. Meetings were held with the Guard Staff
  2. Lighthouse Management was contacted about the incident
  3. A post-mortem was held to determine who was involved (individuals could not be identified)
  4. Pool patrons involved were questioned on the incident
  5. The pool manager(s) were instructed not to allow one on one basketball during peak periods
  6. New locations for placement of the hoop were discussed

The pool committee position on this incident is the hoop should remain. It has been in place for over 10 years and many patrons enjoy using it. Like any other swimming pool fixture, rules must be enforced to ensure the safety of all. I believe in this case, the guards should have stopped the game, an apology issued, and the situation evaluated. Unfortunately, that was not done and the Guards have been instructed to be more aggressive and proactive, i. e. limiting play when the pool is crowded; stopping games completely that become too rough, etc.

If there are other question/concerns please contact me (buehler@freestate.net or 301-776-9886) or any Board Member or, better yet, come to the 13 September MCA Board meeting at 7:00 at the Deerfield Community Center.

Paul Buehler
Trustee & MCA Pool Committee Chairman

As Mr. Buehler notes, the next Board meeting will take place on Tuesday evening, on September 13th, at the Deerfield Community Center (view map). Whether on this issue or any other community concern, your voice is much more powerful when you show up and participate. Please join us!